Rail and wheel lubricator



I June 5, 1951 c, STERN 2,555,615

RAIL. AND WHEEL LUBRICATOR Filed Feb. 14, 1945 LIL iii: :JJ

INVENTOR Char/e5 52? em BY Z4, 62m;

ATTO R N EY Patented June 5, 1951 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

RAIL AND WHEEL LUBRICATOR Charles Stern, Jersey City, N. J.

Application February 14, 1945, Serial No. 577,781

12 Claims. 1

This invention relates to rail and wheel lubricator.

An object of this invention is to provide a rail lubricator adapted tobe attached to a rail, and means thereon for applying grease between thewheel flange and the head of the rail, and also at the outside of theflange, each time a wheel on the track passes the lubricator.

Another object of this invention is to provide a lubricator of thecharacter described comprising a trough like member adapted to beclamped alongside a rail and provided with a collapsible or compressiblechamber to which lubricating grease is fed, the flange of the wheelbeing adapted to collapse or compress the chamber to squeeze grease outof the chamber and onto opposite sides of the flange of the wheel.

Yet another object of this invention is to provide a lubricator of thecharacter described comprising an elongated trough like member clampedjust beneath and on one side of the head of a rail in horizontalposition, and a strip of rubber or the like soft, resilient, rubber likecompressible material in the trough, said strip being arched between itsends to form a chamber for receiving grease, the flange of a wheelpassing over the track being adapted to engage and compress the archedportion of the strip to press grease upwardly onto the rail head and onopposite sides of the wheel flange.

A further object of this invention is to provide a lubricator of thecharacter described having a compressible wiping plate extendinglengthwise of the rail and spaced from the rail head, and means tosupply lubricant to said plate, whereby the wheel may wipe against saidplate to transfer lubricant to the inside of the wheel flange where itwill contact guard rails.

Yet a further object of this invention is to provide a strong anddurable lubricator of the character described which shall be relativelyinexpensive to manufacture, easy to assemble and mount on a rail, andwhich shall yet be practical and efficlent to a high degree in use.

Other objects of this invention will in part be obvious and in parthereinafter pointed out.

The invention accordingly consists in the fea tures of construction,combinations of elements, and arrangement of parts which will beexemplified in the construction hereinafter described, and of which thescope of application will be indicated in the following claims.

In the accompanying drawing, in which is shown one of the variouspossible illustrative embodiments of this invention,

Fig. 1 is a front elevational view of a lubricator embodying theinvention;

Fig. 2 is a top plan view thereof;

Fig. 3 is a partial elevational view of the lubricator showing a wheelcollapsing the grease chamber;

Fig. 4 is a cross-sectional view taken on line 4--4 of Fig. 3; and

Fig. 5 is an end view of the lubricator attached to a rail and showing awheel on the rail.

Referring now in detail to the drawing, I0 designates a rail comprisinga base II, a web l2, and a head I 3. On the rail I0 is shown a car wheel:4 having a tread portion l5 on the rail head, and a flange portion Itat the inner side of the rail head.

Attached to the rail I0 is a lubricator embodying the invention. Thesame comprises a pair of spaced clamps 2| attached to the base II of therail l0. Each clamp 2| comprises a bottom plate 22 formed with a pair ofthrough openings 23 and 24. On plate 22 are a pair of rocking clampblocks 25 and 26 having through openings 25a and 26a, respectively.Extending through the through registering openings 23, 25a is a bolt 21.The clamp blocks 25 rock about an edge 25b, and the bolt 21 serves toclamp the block 25 against the flange of the rail.

Blocks 26 rock about an edge 25b. Extending through the registeringopenings 24 and 262) are bolts 30. Bolt 30 is formed with an integralcollar 3| and with a threaded poriton 32 extending above the collar.Screwed to the threaded end of the bolt 30 is a nut. Between the collar3| and block 26 is a spacing sleeve 33. Mounted on bolts 30 is a channel35 parallel to the base. Channel 35 comprises a bottom horizontal web 36and a pair of upwardly extending flanges 31 and 38. Web 36 is formedwith an opening 39 to which is screwed a street elbow 40. Street elbow40 is screwed to a nipple 4| which is attached to a hose 42 which maylead to any suitable pump or tank for supplying grease to the lubricatorfor the purpose hereinafter appearing. A pair of lock nuts 40a on theupper threaded end 32 of each of the bolts 30 serves to firmly attachthe channel iron 35 in such position that the flange 31 is disposed justbelow the rail head l3. Bolts 30 pass through openings 36a at the endsof web 36.

Within the channel 35 is an elongated block 43 made of wood or any othersuitable material. Block 43 has a lower reduced portion 44 fitted intothe channel and contacting the flange 38.

tral notches or slots 66.

The block 43 may be thickened or enlarged above portion 44 as at 45.Portion 44 may have a tapering surface contacting flange 3e. Contactingthe inner flat vertical surface 46 of the block 43 is a plate or strip41 made of rubber or any other suitable soft, resilient, rubber likecompressible or wiping material. Members 43, l! may be attached togetherby a plurality of horizontal transverse stove bolts 59, or by any othersuitable attaching means. The wiping plate 41 preferably extendssomewhat higher than the block 43 as shown in Fig. 4 of the drawing.Plate 41 is countersunk to receive the heads of the bolts 50 so thatsaid heads are beyond the outer surface of said plate.

Within the bottom of the channel and contacting web 36 is an elongatedflat strip 52 made of rubber and having substantial thickness. Theheight of the rubber strip 52 is preferably such as to extend almost tothe upper edges of the flanges of the channel 35. The strip 52 may beattached to the web 35 by a plurality of vertical screws 55. The strip52 does not extend the entire length of the plate ll, but terminates asat 5"! short of an end of said plate. It will be noted that the block 43and plate 4? terminate short of the ends of channel 35.

The opening 39 in the web 36 is located nearer one end than the other.It is disposed beyond the end 5'5 of strip 52.

Mounted on the web 36 and disposed beyond strip 52 is another strip 60of rubber or any other soft, resilient, rubber-like compressibleresilient material. The strip 550 is arched upwardly. The ends 62thereof are attached to the web 36 by means of screws or bolts 63. Themiddle arched portion extends above strip 52. Its inner and outer edges85 may be formed with opposite cen- It will be noted that the width ofstrips 52 and 60 is such as to extend substantially from plate 4"! toflange 31. Strip 69 is of less thickness than strip 52 as shown in thedrawing.

On the upper surface of the ends 62 are plates 68 formed with throughopenings'to receive the attaching screws (53 which are fixed to the webof the channel. The heads of said screws contact the plate 58. Therubber strip 52 and block 43 and plate il may be fixed tothe channel 35by a plurality of horizontal transverse through bolts Ill extendingthrough suitable openings formed in said strip, block, and plate.

It will now be understood that as the wheel passes over the rail in thedirection of the arrow in Fig. 3; the flange thereof contacts the archedportion of rubber strip 69 to compress the same lubricate the wheel whenthe flange comes in' contact with a guard rail as is often used insubways. The grease which is deposited between the flange of the wheeland the head of the rail serves to lubricate the rail as well as thewheel flange. The trough like lubricator serves as a wiper to holdgrease as the wheel flange passes through the trough. Strip 6? andbacking or wiping plate 41 act as wipers for the wheel flange.

It will thus be seen that there is provided a device in which theseveral objects of this invention are achieved, and which is welladapted to meet the conditions of practical use.

As various possible embodiments might be made of the above invention,and as various changes might be made in the embodiment above set forth,it is to be understood that all matter herein set forth or shown in theaccompanying drawing is to be interpreted as illustrative and not in alimiting sense. 7

Having thus described my invention, I claim as new and desire to secureby Letters Patent:

1. A track lubricator comprising an elongated channel having a bottomhorizontal web and upstanding flanges, means engaging the ends of thechannel to clamp the channel to a rail, with the channel disposed belowand on one side of the head of a rail, a backing wall fixed within thechannel and extending longitudinally thereof and projecting above thechannel, and a strip of resilient material within the channel, the endsof said strip being fixed to the web of the channel. and said stripbeing arched between its ends and in the path of the flange of a wheelpassing over the rail, the web of the channel having an opening belowsaid strip through which greasemay be supplied to the chamber formedbetween the strip and the web, said strip being for-med with a notch onthe edge there-of adjacent the backing member, said strip being formedwith a notch on the opposite edge thereof, said backing plate being madeof compressible material.

2. A device for lubricating a rail having a head, a web, and a base,comprising a pair of spaced clamps adapted, to be clamped to the base ofthe rail, a longitudinal member fixed to said clamps and adapted toextend parallel to the rail and on one side of and just below the headof the rail, and a collapsible chamber on said member comprising anupper arched, downwardly collapsible wall of flexible rubber-likematerial extending longitudinally of said member and adapted to becollapsed by the flange of the wheel passing along the rail anddepressing said collapsible wall, said chamber being formed with aninlet toreceive lubricant, and said chamber being further provided withan outlet to dispense lubricant therefrom when collapsed.

3. A device for lubricating a rail having a head, a web and a base,comprising a pair of spaced clamps adapted to be clamped to the base ofthe rail, a longitudinal member fixed to said clamps and adapted toextend parallel to the rail and and on one side of and just below thehead of the rail, and a collapsible chamber on said member comprising anupper downwardly collapsible wall adapted to be collapsed by the flangeof the wheel passing along the rail and depressing said collapsiblewall, said chamber being formed with an inlet to receive lubricant, andsaid chamber being further provided with an outlet to dispense lubricanttherefrom when collapsed, said outlet bein on one side of the chamberand adapted to be located adjacent the head of the rail, a second memberhaving an elongated wall extending longitudinally of the first memberand projecting upwardly therefrom and located at the opposite side ofsaid chamber, and projecting above said chamber, and said chamber beingprovided with an outlet at said opposite side thereof and adjacent saidwall.

4. A device for lubricating a rail having a head, a web and a base,comprising a pair of spaced clamps adapted to be clamped to the base ofthe rail, a longitudinal member fixed to said clamps and adapted toextend parallel to the rail and on one side of and just below the headof the rail, and a collapsible chamber on said member comprising anupper downwardly collapsible wall adapted to be collapsed by the flangeof the wheel passing along the rail and depressing said collapsiblewall, said chamber being formed with an inlet to receive lubricant, andsaid chamber being further provided with an outlet to dispense lubricanttherefrom when collapsed, said outlet being on one side of the chamberand adapted to be located adjacent the head of the rail, a second memberhaving an elongated wall extending longitudinally of the first memberand :projecting upwardly therefrom and located at the opposite side ofsaid chamber, and projecting above said chamber, and said chamber beingprovided with an outlet at said opposite side thereof and adjacent saidwall, said wall being made of compressible material.

5. A track lubricator comprising an elongated member having a bottomwall, and spaced longitudinal walls extending upwardly from said bottomwall, an upstanding wall on said member projecting above saidlongitudinal walls, and an upwardly arched wall of resilient materialbetween said longitudinal walls forming with said upstanding wall andbottom wall a chamber, said bottom wall being formed with an inletopening to admit lubricant to said chamber.

6. A track lubricator comprising an elongated member having a bottomwall, and spaced longitudinal walls extending upwardly from said bottomwalls, an upstanding wall on said member projecting above saidlongitudinal walls, and an upwardly arched wall of resilient materialbetween said longitudinal walls forming with said upstanding wall andbottom wall a chamber, said bottom wall being formed with an inletopening to admit lubricant to said chamber, said arched well beingformed with notches at opposite sides thereof and adjacent saidupstanding walls.

7. A lubricating device comprising a pair of spaced clamps, a horizontalchannel-shaped member attached at the ends thereof to said clamps, saidchannel-shaped member comprising a horizontal bottom wall and a pair offlanges upstanding therefrom, an elongated member having its lower endprojecting into the channel-shaped member and contactin the inner sideof one flange, an elongated strip of material disposed within saidchannel-shaped member and between the second-mentioned member and saidother flange, and a second strip of compressible material within saidchannel-shaped member and between said second-mentioned member and saidother flange, said second strip being arched upwardly to form a chamberfor lubricant.

. 8. A lubricating device comprisin a pair of spaced clamps, ahorizontal channel-shaped member attached at the ends thereof to saidclamps, said channel-shaped member comprising a horizontal bottom walland a pair of flanges upstanding therefrom, an elongated member havingits lower end projecting into the channelshaped member and contactingthe inner side of one flange, an elongated strip of material dis- .posedwithin said channel-shaped member and 61 0nd strip having a notch at theedge thereof adjacent the second-mentioned member.

9. A lubricating device comprising a pair of spaced clamps, a horizontalchannel-shaped member attached at the ends thereof to said clamps, saidchannel-shaped member comprising a horizontal bottom wall and a pair offlanges upstanding therefrom, an elongated member havin its lower endprojecting into the channelshaped member and contacting the inner sideof one flange, an elongated strip of resilient material disposed withinsaid channel-shaped member and between the second-mentioned member andsaid other flange, and a second strip of compressible material withinsaid channel-shaped member and between said second-mentioned member andsaid other flange, said second strip being arched upwardly to form achamber for lubricant, said second strip having a notch at the edgethereof adjacent the second-mentioned member, and a notch at theopposite side thereof adjacent said other flange.

10. A device for lubricating a rail having a head, a web and a base,comprising clamping means adapted to be clamped to the base of the rail,a longitudinal member adapted to extend parallel to the rail, means forattaching said member to said clamping means, and a chamber on saidmember, said chamber comprising an upper, arched, downwardly collapsiblewall of flexible rubber like material extending longitudinally of saidmember and adapted to be collasped by the flange of a wheel passingalong the rail and depressing said collapsible wall, said chamber beingformed with an inlet to receive lubricant, said chamber being furtherprovided with an outlet to dispense lubricant when said collapsible wallis depressed, said outlet being on one side of the chamber and locatedadjacent the head of the rail.

11. A device for lubricating a rail including a head, a web and a base,a longitudinal member adapted to extend parallel to the rail and on oneside of the head of the rail, means to fix said member to the base ofthe rail, said member including an upstanding wall spaced from the headof the rail and extending parallel thereto, a. chamber on said member,said chamber comprising a downwardly collapsible, arched, wall offlexible rubber like material extending longitudinally of said memberand adapted to be collapsed by the flange of a wheel passing along therail, said chamber being formed with an inlet to receive lubricant, saidchamber being provided with outlets to dispense lubricant uponcollapsing said wall, one of said outlets being disposed on one side ofsaid chamber adjacent the upstanding wall on said longitudinal memberand another outlet being disposed on the other side of said chamber andadapted to be located adjacent the head of the rail.

12. A device for lubricating a rail including a head, a web and a base,a longitudinal member adapted to extend parallel to the rail and on one5 side of the head of the rail, means to fix said member to the base ofthe rail, said member including an upstanding wall spaced from the headof the rail and extending parallel thereto, a chamber on said member,said chamber comprising a downwardly collapsible wall of flexiblematerial adapted to be collapsed by the flange of a wheel passing alongthe rail, said chamber being formed with an inlet to receive lubricant,said chamber being provided with outlets to dispense lubricant when saidwall is collapsed, one of said outlets being disposed on one side ofsaid chamber adjacent the upstanding wall on said longitudinal memberand another outlet being disposed on the other side of said chamber andadapted to be located adjacent the head of the rail, and a wiping memberon said upstanding wall adapted to be located adjacent the flange of awheel passing along the rail.

CHARLES STERN.

REFERENCES CITED Number Number 8 UNI ED STATES PATENTS Name Date KorthOct. 19, 1926 Hamilton Jan. 5, 1932 Merk Feb. 28, 1933 Elmer Nov. 7,1933 Huck Apr. 4, 1939 Overmier Aug. 8, 1939 Hayes Dec. 26, 1939Lukowitz Sept. 18, 1945 FOREIGN PATENT Country Date Great Britain Aug.23, 1934

